Tips for encouraging employees to lose weight

In a recent study done by General Motors, it stated that overweight employees cost the company about $1500 more in health care services each year compared to an employee with normal weight and a healthy body.The general idea was that overweight employees were costing them at least 1.4 billion more in health care costs a year.Sounds like a big number doesn't it?Overweight employees made up 37 percent of the workforce in 2005, and it is predicted that by 2010 it will increase to 47 percent.This is going to mean that health care costs are going to sky rocket through the roof.As a business owner this should concern you as you want to be able to offer all employees good and affordable health care.So how do you get your employees to want to be healthy and fit?Here are some tips for encouraging employees to lost weight.

Tip #1:Encourage your employees to get Educated
The first step in helping employees want to lose weight is to help them understand the dangers of being overweight.Many people do not realize how serious high cholesterol or high blood pressure is or what they can lead to.And it is also a good idea to educate them on how obesity can affect the family.Children and marital issues are always an issue when you are struggling with being overweight.Educating them also means helping them understand how much it costs in health care each year when they are overweight.The statistics are scary, but can be a powerful motivator on the road to weight loss if they know that health care costs will decrease.There are a variety of ways to teach them about living a healthier life.Look to your community first and see what kinds of things they offer; brochures, organizations, and classes are usually available through your recreation department.It might even be helpful to organize a class during work hours so everyone can attend and get the information.

Tip #2:Approach the subject in terms of being Healthy, not just losing weight
Weight loss can be a difficult issue to bring up and you don't want to offend anyone, so instead of telling your employees they all need to lose some fat, focus on living a healthier life.There is a much bigger picture to weight loss than just being skinny; you want your employees to be healthy.Being overweight can cause problems with your hips, knees, and back, as well as lead to high blood pressure and heart disease.We can control out body weight and you can help them begin.

Tip #3:Don't single anyone out
People who are overweight usually already know it and it is already a sensitive issue so don't just single out the obese employees.Choose a health and wellness program that emphasizes overall health; nutritious foods, exercise, and healthy mind are all parts to that.Just because you have thin employees does not mean they are healthy, or know how to live a healthy life.

Tip #4:Get your employees excited about nutrition
If you want your employees to be healthy and lost weight then you're going to need to come up with a way to get them excited about it.Start a recipe bulletin board and have employees contribute to some ideas for healthy recipes.If you have a cafeteria you might be able to talk with the head chef and figure out a way to get some different foods in there.If you don't have a cafeteria you can host a potluck lunch and have everyone bring their favorite healthy dish of food, or if a lunch won't work then choose different employees to bring some healthy snacks to nibble on during the day.Fruit and vegetable trays are a good start instead of bring the usual bag of chips and a soda.If you have vending machines in your office try getting rid of the junk.As you get them excited about eating new and healthy foods, try and get them excited about exercise too.People love being social, so try and start an exercise program within the company.Get an aerobics instructor, or start a lunch hour or early morning workout.If it's in the companies' budget you can try to have a workout facility available to your employees or some sort of membership pass available to them through the company.There are many ways to get them excited; you just need to be an active participant.

Losing weight is not an easy task and takes encouragement from everyone.Hopefully these tips for encouraging employees to lose weight and be healthy will get you started on the road to success.